


Don't Leave

by forbiddengarnet



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Blind Character, Blood and Injury, Established Relationship, Gladnis Weekend 2020, M/M, Self-Sacrifice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2020-11-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:02:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27592450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/forbiddengarnet/pseuds/forbiddengarnet
Summary: After Noctis ventured forth into the Citadel to defeat Ardyn once and for all, it was up to Gladio, Ignis and Prompto to bring down the two Iron Giants that had appeared at the foot of the Citadel stairs. As it turned out, though, it wasn’t only the two Giants...Written for the Gladnis Weekend 2020Sunday, 11/15: after the dawn eraOne-two words: Sing | sacrificeSituational: A sticky situation | one of them gets struck down after protecting the otherDialogue: "That was the corniest thing I've ever heard." | "You promised we'd always be together."
Relationships: Gladiolus Amicitia/Ignis Scientia
Comments: 4
Kudos: 16
Collections: Gladnis Weekend 2020





	Don't Leave

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to TheBlackMorals for beta-reading this!

After Noctis ventured forth into the Citadel to defeat Ardyn once and for all, it was up to Gladio, Ignis and Prompto to bring down the two Iron Giants that had appeared at the foot of the Citadel stairs. As it turned out, though, it wasn’t only the two Giants - that would have been too easy, and nothing in life is ever simple. No, during the fight, several more daemons also joined the fray - some Floating Deaths, two Ahriman, two Arachne, a Ronin, and a bunch of little nuisances. This was by far not the first fight the three comrades had been in since arriving in Insomnia this time around, so they had already used a fair deal of energy. Therefore they really hoped this would be the final battle.  
  
During the fight, Ignis tried his best to not let his mind wander to the throne room. For ten long years, he, Gladio and Prompto, along with so many other friends and comrades, had done their best to keep the people of Lucis safe from the daemons. They had been hopeful for Noctis’ return, but it had turned out to be a bittersweet reunion. Right in this moment Noctis was in the throne room fighting his own final battle in which he had to lay down his life so that the world may find peace and daylight once again. It possibly hit Ignis the hardest, too, as Noctis wasn’t only his King, but also his oldest friend and brother. Ignis had grown up alongside him, had supported him in every minor and major decision. They had grown up believing that one day Noctis would carry on his father’s legacy as the King of Lucis - hopefully as a fair, good natured King, beloved by the citizens and respected by other nations' rulers. Ignis knew that if he thought too much about the battle currently happening in the throne room, and how it would end for ‘his brother’, he would break.  
  
His mind didn’t have the time to wander, though. With so many daemons keeping them busy - and Ignis fighting without his sight - he had to be on constant high alert. For ten long years he had taught himself to fight blind, had even developed new, devastating techniques with his boyfriend, and it had all been for this day. All three of them took a lot of hits and blows from the enemies, but they would pull through. They _had_ to - defeat was not an option.  
  
Eventually - _finally_ \- Ignis’ ears began to pick up less daemon numbers around them, indicating to him that they were (hopefully) nearing the end of the battle. The timing couldn’t be better, either, as his body was slowly beginning to run out of energy, every muscle screaming for him to stop fighting. “Almost done,” Ignis heard Gladio huff wearily, relatively close to him, while Prompto’s gunshots rang out a little farther away from them.  
  
Ignis plunged his spear into a daemon just when the Ronin, which was already on its last leg, closed in and swung its sword at him, but it didn’t hit its intended mark. Gladio instinctively pushed Ignis out of the way, but he was too late to block the daemon’s diagonal blow that now came at him instead. He cried out in pain as the blade slashed across his torso, from his right side just below the ribs and up towards his left shoulder, forming a cross with the old scar once received from the Blademaster himself. “ _Gladio!!_ ” Prompto shouted as he saw his friend fall. Gladio hit the ground with a heavy thud, the soaring pain momentarily drowning out anything else around him. The Ronin readied itself for another swing, but Prompto snapped out of his shock and managed to fire enough shots to take the last daemon down just in time.  
  
Even though Ignis couldn’t see, he could still hear well - the sickening sound of a blade cutting through flesh and bone, Gladio’s cry of pain, a heavy weight hitting the ground. The sounds were only a few feet away. “ _Gladio?_ ” Ignis screamed in growing fear as he walked in a crouch in the direction he believed his boyfriend to be, hands reaching out to feel ahead of him. He heard the Shield groan in pain, as well as Prompto’s footsteps running towards them. One of Ignis’ hands met Gladio’s right leg first, before the other hand found his hip, and he quickly let himself drop onto his knees by Gladio’s side. “Say something, Gladio!” Ignis pleaded as he hastily pulled off his gloves, his hands shaking as he tried to keep himself together. Prompto’s steps stopped just a few feet away from them.  
  
“ _S-something_ …” Gladio uttered on a raspy breath, and Ignis grit his teeth at the ill timed ‘joke’ that might well have made him smile at least, in any other situation. As Ignis’ bare hands carefully felt along the blood soaked fabric of his boyfriend’s Kingsglaive uniform now, though, he was quick to find the long gash. That was the final straw for Ignis, and he was no longer able to hold back his tears. “Prompto, go find Cor. Hurry!” he ordered Prompto, who quickly reacted to the command. “Right!” Prompto confirmed, and ran off to find the Marshall and any other help he could get. They knew the Kingsglaive were stationed in the city, so with any luck medical support wasn’t far away.  
  
Usually it was one of Ignis’ gifts to be able to remain level-headed and calm in any given situation, but right now, with Gladio’s life on the line, he began to panic. The adviser quickly pulled off his own Kingsglaive jacket and pressed it down on his boyfriend’s wound in an attempt to somehow slow down the blood loss, but the injury was too large. Ignis heard Gladio grunt in pain, and he pushed away any thought that whatever he did might not be enough to save Gladio. He wanted the Shield to keep talking, but at the same time he also had to preserve his energy. Ignis felt his boyfriend’s familiar broad hand grip his arm, which was enough to assure him that he was still conscious.  
  
Just when Ignis was about to summon a potion, there was a sudden shift inside him, a snap of some kind, and everything from their Armiger materialised around them - flasks, potion bottles, weapons, everything came clattering to the ground. Ignis instantly recognised the loud clatter of their weapons. That could only mean… “ _Noct…_ ” Ignis breathed, biting back a sob - _the King of Light was dead_. With Noctis, last descendant of the royal Lucian bloodline, gone from this world, his magic also disappeared. A new dread overcame Ignis as he blindly reached around himself for a potion bottle near him - its healing magics were based on Noctis’ powers… Grabbing the closest bottle, Ignis unscrewed the cap to sniff at its content, and he could immediately tell that it no longer contained the distinct heavy scent that healing magic usually left behind. The liquid inside was once again simple water. “Shit!” Ignis cursed loudly as he threw the bottle away in frustration - it was rare for him to curse so bluntly, but the potion had been his only hope of first aid for Gladio. The potions that they and the Kingsglaive carried were more potent than those of the red mages, made stronger through the Crystal’s magic, so they habitually carried these stronger potions. This lack of foresight was now threatening to cost Gladio’s life, and Ignis would never forgive himself for it.  
  
Suddenly, loud, downright chilling screams of agony erupted throughout the city. The screams sounded familiar and far away, yet… “What happened?!” the adviser asked in alarm, and Gladio managed a gentle squeeze to his arm.  
  
“ _Dawn_ ,” the Shield rasped with significant effort, watching through half lidded eyes how the sky slowly began to brighten with the light that would finally bring an end to the daemons. He was still in an incredible amount of pain, but he felt surprisingly calm. He had failed to keep Noctis safe, but Ignis would at least be able to continue living. That had always been half of Gladio’s oath, to protect Ignis, the man he loved more than anything in the world. And at least he was able to experience the first dawn after the Long Night together with Ignis, too.  
  
Gladio averted his eyes from the slowly brightening sky, slowly looking back at Ignis leaning over him. He could probably count on one hand the amount of times he had ever seen his boyfriend cry, but this was the most heartbreaking. Gladio’s vision was beginning to get blurry from the blood loss, but he wanted to see Ignis for as long as possible. His arm felt incredibly heavy as he lifted it up, until his hand cupped Ignis’ cheek, and the adviser’s bloodied hand quickly reached up to grip it tightly.  
  
Ignis was shaken by how cold Gladio’s hand was as he held it tightly in his own. And slowly, the weight in Ignis hand became heavier as the Shield’s strength to hold his arm up faded. “No, Gladio, don’t you _dare_ leave me, too! You promised we'd always be together! You never go back on your word!” Ignis demanded, _pleading_ in tears for Gladio to remain conscious, but it was a losing battle. He was about to go on, when suddenly he could hear who he thought to be Prompto in the distance, coming towards them, but his attention was drawn back to his struggling boyfriend.  
  
“ _I love you, Iggy_ ,” Gladio whispered, and the last thing he heard was Ignis frantically calling his name as his world turned dark once again.  
  


* * *

  
An intense, throbbing pain pulled at Gladio’s consciousness - his entire body in agony, but he instantly recognised most of the pain was centred in his chest. He had no idea where he was just then, but he doubted one would feel _this_ much pain in _the Beyond_.  
  
The next thing the Shield felt was… a familiar warmth enveloping his left hand, from which he took a great sense of comfort. Slowly opening his eyes and squinting at the harsh, artificial light surrounding him, Gladio slowly came to realize that no, he indeed wasn’t dead. As his eyes began to adjust to the light, he saw what looked to be a blood transfusion bag hanging above him, with tubes, and he realized he was lying on a bed. Blinking slowly, he turned his head just enough to be able to see a mop of blonde hair on the mattress next to his arm, and he had no trouble recognising exactly whose hair that was. Next his eyes found Ignis sitting on some box next to the bed, and Gladio was briefly reminded of the time a decade ago when their positions had been reversed, with him sitting next to Ignis’ bed after the adviser had been injured from using the Ring’s powers. A small, tired smile tugged at the corners of Gladio’s lips as he gave Ignis’ hand a soft squeeze  
  
To Ignis, the past hours had possibly been the worst of his entire life, filled with uncertainty about whether or not Gladio would survive, along with despair over Noctis’ death. The adviser hadn’t left his boyfriend’s bedside ever since the Kingsglaive and medics had left the room, but exhaustion had finally caught up with him not long ago. Even in his uneasy sleep he was alert, though, and it only took the soft squeeze of his hand to make him wake up with a start. “Gladio?” he asked, wishing for the thousandth time that he could see. Over the past decade he had made his peace with his sudden lack of sight, but now he felt the disadvantage all the more, as he was wrecked with worry over Gladio. “Hey, gorgeous,” he heard his boyfriend’s voice, quiet and soft, but with the same warmth as he would usually say those words. Ignis really wasn’t one for emotional outbursts, but the immense relief that overcame him right then brought a new wave of tears with it, and he lifted Gladio’s hand up to kiss the back of it. For hours he had feared he would never be able to hear his other half’s deep, rumbling voice again.  
  
Ignis wanted to ask why Gladio had nearly sacrificed himself, wanted to call him an idiot for jumping in front of the enemy’s blade like that, but he decided to do neither. He already knew exactly why, and they both knew that Ignis would have done the same thing. Instead, he reached out with a hand, now clean of blood, to where he knew his boyfriend’s head was, and carded his fingers through the messy, dark hair. “Where… where are we?” Ignis heard Gladio ask, and the Shield pulled his hand out of Ignis’ hold to cup his cheek instead, his thumb brushing away his tears. Ignis tried to pull himself together again, but it was so difficult right then, with both relief over Gladio’s survival and grief over Noctis’ death tearing at him. The dam had been opened, and he found it difficult to stop the flood. He reached up to hold Gladio’s hand more securely against his cheek. “The Kingsglaive base in Insomnia. The Marshall anticipated we’d lose our magic after Noct… after Noct defeated Ardyn,” Ignis said - they both knew what Noctis’ defeat over Ardyn ultimately meant, “So he had medics stationed here, as well as conventional medicine, in case…”  
  
Gladio listened, his eyes not once leaving Ignis - the uniform jacket and his visor were missing, his complexion was pale, and his hair was dishevelled, but at the same time he was as beautiful as ever. He had been wholly prepared to die for Ignis, but apparently it wasn’t his time yet. Not that he was complaining, far from it - he was given the chance to remain by his boyfriend’s side, and that was more than he could ever wish for. Now they could be there for each other, and offer support to one another after they both lost a close friend and brother. Gladio vaguely remembered seeing the first crack of dawn before he had fallen unconscious, and the sinking feeling of knowing that Noctis had paid the ultimate price for defeating Ardyn and the Starscourge. Ignis’ tears were drying now, but Gladio doubted that would be the last tears - for either of them.  
  
Then there was a knock on the door, and Prompto carefully opened it. “Ignis? The Marshall as-- Heya Big Guy, you’re awake!” Prompto cheered up instantly as he saw that Gladio was awake. “‘Bout time, too, we were getting worried here!” he added as he walked towards the bed. His eyes were still red from crying over the loss of Noctis, his best friend, but seeing Gladio’s small, tired smile was a relief. More than that, though, he had a good idea of how much more the Shield’s survival meant to Ignis. Prompto had never seen Ignis cry before, but over the past hours he hardly saw his friend’s eye dry at all. To Prompto, the couple had always been inseparable, and an inspiration to him - they never backed down from a threat or challenge, complemented each other perfectly, and as the King’s Hand and Shield they shouldered burdens together that Prompto could only guess at, considering their upbringing.  
  
“Prompto, what about the Marshall?” Ignis asked as he finally lowered his and Gladio’s linked hands. “Oh, right! Uhh… He wants to discuss, uhm, Noct…” Prompto said, his voice breaking a bit when he said Noctis’ name. His voice was thick with emotions, full of hurt and sorrow at the loss of his best friend, and he dreaded the upcoming discussion about what to do with Noctis’ remains. A moment of heavy silence followed. “Right…” Ignis confirmed, giving Gladio’s hand a squeeze. “Please tell Cor that Gladio’s awake, I’m sure the medic team will want to check on him,” Ignis added, wanting a little more time to fill his boyfriend in on what more had happened in the past few hours. “Gotcha,” Prompto said, then encouragingly patted Gladio on the shoulder saying “Glad you’re back, man,” before he turned to leave the room again.  
  
“What about Noct?” Gladio asked after another moment, his voice a little stronger now that he was more awake, yet the pain from his wounds was audible in his voice despite his attempt to hide it from Ignis. Hopefully the medics wouldn’t take too long, so they could give him some more pain medication, Ignis thought as Gladio couldn’t fool him with his attempt to hide the pain. He hesitated another moment then, trying to think of how best to broach the subject about Noctis. “A team of the Kingsglaive entered the Citadel, to retrieve Noct from the throne room. They… found him on the throne with his father’s sword. The Crystal is shattered and the Starscourge and daemons seem to be gone, reports say. We’ve lost all magic. I actually found that out the hard way after our battle; our potions were rendered useless, and the Armiger dispelled all our weapons. They’re currently stored in the room next door,” Ignis summed up quietly, finding it easier to report on the daemons and magic than to talk about their deceased childhood friend and King.  
  
“Right…” Gladio murmured, feeling defeated as he had failed as Noctis’ Shield. His rational side knew that there had been nothing he could have done, while another part of him couldn’t stop with the ‘What if’s. The most terrifying question was: what if they could have found a different way to defeat Ardyn? Just the thought made him feel sick - or maybe it was the pain from his wound that was beginning to become too overwhelming. Gladio hadn’t felt this much excruciating pain since the very similar injury he had received from Gilgamesh all those years ago, but in a way this felt even worse. Gilgamesh hasn't been a daemon, though, so maybe that was the difference.  
  
Luckily the Shield didn’t seem to need to wait too long for medical support, as there was a knock to the door a moment later, followed by Cor stepping in without being prompted to. “I think it’s time for me to pass on the title of “The Immortal” to you,” the Marshall said to Gladio in good humour while two medics and Prompto entered the room next, and the medics instantly went to check on Gladio’s vitals, wound, and prepared some pain medicine. The injury also needed new bandages, as the ones wrapped around his chest now were already bleeding through. Ignis stood from his seat by his boyfriend’s bedside, and took a few steps back to let the medics work. Gladio smiled at his old mentor's jest. “I dunno, ‘Cor the Immortal’ sounds cooler than ‘Gladio the Immortal’, so you keep it,” he replied with a tired smile. Growing up, Cor had always been someone Gladio had looked up to, so he couldn’t have taken the title even if Cor had been serious.  
  
“Suit yourself,” Cor said with his smile turning more amused - Gladio was already joking, so the Marshall was confident that he was over the worst. In that sense he and Gladio were very similar indeed - they both bounced back quickly. “Ignis, there’s a meeting with the Kingsglaive in the common room in ten minutes,” Cor said then, briefly turning his attention to Ignis who nodded in turn. Prompto already stepped up to the adviser’s side, and tugged him along by the sleeve (“C’mon, Iggy.”) as there was a lot of equipment laying around the entire base that Ignis could easily trip over. “Don’t worry, Gladio, we won’t make major decisions without you. Get some rest for now,” Cor added in Gladio’s direction, who was looking more tired already from the new dose of the strong medicine.  
  
“‘Preciated”, Gladio said, hissing quietly as the old bandage was being removed as carefully as the medics could. He definitely still wanted to have a vote in any major decisions, especially if they concerned Noctis or their next steps, but right now the Shield didn’t have it in him to argue against getting some more rest.  
  
After Cor left the room to go join the meeting, Gladio tried to help the two medics as much as he could, but given the strain and pain in his chest, he wasn’t of much help at all. At least Ignis wasn’t there to witness the struggle, as Gladio believed his boyfriend was already suffering enough with everything else that had happened in the past hours. They still had a long way ahead of them, where they would need to put Noctis to rest and start rebuilding Insomnia. But for now, once he was left alone in the room, Gladio finally let his eyes close as he gave in to the exhaustion. He wanted to be at Ignis’ side again as soon as possible, and for that to happen, he needed a lot more rest.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on Twitter @tonberryjan


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